July 2002/33
Guide
Regional profiles of higher education
View most recent Regional profiles (June 2006)
Regional Profiles 2002 provides comparative information about higher education in each of England’s nine government regions.
Information for each region includes:
- a map showing all the universities and colleges providing higher education courses
- the annual expenditure, income and funding of each higher education institution
- where students come from, what subjects they study, and how they study - full-time, part-time, undergraduate and postgraduate
- what kind of jobs students take when they graduate.
New to the 2002 edition is a ‘Learning in the region’ page. It shows numbers of students actually studying within the geographic region, and distinguishes this from students registered at an institution in the region but who are located elsewhere, such as students of distance learning programmes.
Sample pages from Regional profiles
Printed copies of this publication are no longer available.
Contents
Introduction
Background to higher education
Map of higher education
Regional profiles
North-East
North-West
Yorkshire and the Humber
East Midlands
West Midlands
East of England
London
South-East
South-West
Annexes
Data sources
HEFCE regional consultants
Useful addresses
Introduction
1. This is the fourth annual edition of our 'Regional profiles' of higher education (HE). As in previous years, the report sets out a range of data on the pattern of HE in each of the nine regions in England.
2. The regional dimension of higher education continues to grow in importance. HE retains its core academic and intellectual purposes of supporting student learning and undertaking research. These can transcend geographical boundaries. But there is increasing recognition that higher education institutions (HEIs) do not operate in isolation from the communities in which they are located. On the contrary, they are powerful instruments for promoting the economic, social and cultural welfare and development of their localities, their regions, and the nation as a whole. As the regions gain in significance as a focus for economic and social regeneration and development activity – particularly through the work of Regional Development Agencies and the growing role of regional assemblies – appreciation of the regional contribution of HEIs increases correspondingly.
3. We published in March 2001 a policy statement for consultation on our approach to regional issues in higher education [note 1]. This invited views on whether we are correctly articulating the regional dimension for HE, and whether there were more or different actions that we could usefully take. Respondents generally welcomed the policy statement and a number of useful suggestions for further action were made [note 2].
4. It was felt that the HEFCE had correctly interpreted the regional agenda and was reflecting this appropriately in its programmes and policies. There was widespread agreement that HEFCE should leave it to the discretion of each institution and region to determine their own priorities. However, the point was also made that there is some unevenness in the extent to which regions are responding to the regional agenda. Respondents stressed that this agenda is changing rapidly and should be kept under regular review. They also suggested that there is a need to bring other partners more fully into evolving collaborations. The regional consortia of HEIs were seen as playing an important and continuing role.
5. We held a seminar in November 2001 to disseminate these responses to the consultation, and we are now embarking on the necessary actions, including further support to HEI regional consortia to take forward the regional agenda. All consortia have been offered a continuation of HEFCE financial support, so they can keep developing their collaborative activity.
6. Since the previous edition of the 'Regional profiles' we have published studies of the regional contributions made by universities and colleges across a number of dimensions – economic, social and cultural [note 3]. The nine regional reports were accompanied by a national overview report [note 4]. We have also recently published a report setting out how HEIs can assess their own regional performance by reference to a set of benchmarks [note 5]. All this work has been undertaken by the Centre for Urban and Regional Development Studies at the University of Newcastle upon Tyne, with support from the HEFCE and Universities UK.
7. In December 2001 we published a survey of interactions between HE and business, which reflects the growing importance of the contribution HEIs make to regional and local economic developments [note 6]. The survey included data on such topics as the extent of collaborative research, intellectual property, consultancy, spin-off firms, regeneration, and engagement with employers. A further survey is currently being carried out and it is expected that data will be collected annually.
8. Recent developments all reinforce the importance of regional engagement. In December 2001, jointly with the Learning and Skills Council (LSC), we published a consultation document on 'Partnerships for Progression' [note 7]. This proposes a campaign to widen and increase the participation of 18-30 year-olds in HE. It acknowledges that this relies on comprehensive partnerships of local LSCs, HEIs, further education, training providers and schools. At the time of writing, capacity building is under way in the regions, to develop a network of partnerships capable of preparing and implementing business plans to draw together the contribution of the different partners. The HE associations are contributing significantly in bringing together the necessary partners. Regional Development Agencies, Government Offices and other regional stakeholders are involved in the regional advisory networks that are overseeing this work.
9. Partnerships for Progression is perhaps the most tangible current example of collaboration at the regional level. There are many others. We consult with regional partners on the allocation of additional student numbers and the assessment of bids for 'third stream’ funding, such as the HE Reach-out to Business and the Community fund [note 8], the Higher Education Innovation Fund [note 9] and the New Technology Institutes [note 10]. All these initiatives will strengthen the contribution which HEIs and further education colleges make to economic development through promotion of a learning society and a knowledge-based economy.
10. In the current environment we expect the levels of engagement with regional partners to continue to grow. We face the challenge of ensuring that the full range of HE services – excellent learning and teaching, research, links with business and the community, and widening participation – is provided within each region. This policy aim will mean greater collaboration between HE and FE providers but also with the full range of regional stakeholders.
11. All this needs to be underpinned by accurate and extensive information about the regional role of HE. We hope that this report will contribute to this and continue to inform the shaping and implementation of policy.
Notes
1. 'Higher Education and the regions: HEFCE policy statement' (HEFCE 01/18). All HEFCE publications are available on our web-site or in hard copy
2. 'Responses to consultation on the HEFCE policy statement: higher education and the regions', available on the web with HEFCE 01/18
3. 'The regional mission’, HEFCE/Universities UK. Nine regional reports available from Universities UK, www.universitiesuk.ac.uk
4. 'The regional mission: national report’, HEFCE/Universities UK, available from Universities UK
5. 'Evaluating the regional contribution of an HEI: a benchmarking approach' (HEFCE 02/23)
6. 'Higher education-business interaction survey' (HEFCE 01/68)
7. 'Partnerships for Progression: proposals by the HEFCE and the Learning and Skills Council' (HEFCE 01/73)
8. 'Higher Education Reach-out to Business and the Community Fund: Invitation to apply for special funding' (HEFCE 99/40)
9. 'Higher Education Innovation Fund: invitation to apply for special funding' (HEFCE 01/34)
10. 'New Technology Institutes: invitation to bid for funds' (HEFCE 01/47)
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